If you know me, I love numbers (and people!). A discussion with someone at the Calgary convention made me think of some interesting analysis. (Based on the chartered clubs as of July 23, 2008.)
What countries have the most Toastmasters clubs — how much of them are overseas? (Click on the graphic to view full size and readable.)
Which U.S. states have the most Toastmasters clubs?
Which states have the highest number of clubs for their population size? (I.e., they have a lot more Toastmasters clubs than “normal”.)
| State | Clubs | Population | Per capita |
| Washington, DC | 132 | 588,292 | 4,457 |
| Minnesota | 278 | 5,197,621 | 18,696 |
| Hawaii | 62 | 1,283,388 | 20,700 |
| Washington | 295 | 6,468,424 | 21,927 |
| North Dakota | 29 | 639,715 | 22,059 |
| Montana | 42 | 957,861 | 22,806 |
| Oregon | 153 | 3,747,455 | 24,493 |
| South Dakota | 31 | 796,214 | 25,684 |
| Nebraska | 65 | 1,774,571 | 27,301 |
| Alaska | 25 | 683,478 | 27,339 |
Or the least number of clubs for their population? (I.e., could be our biggest opportunities for growth.)
| Rhode Island | 16 | 1,057,832 | 66,115 |
| New York | 280 | 19,297,729 | 68,920 |
| Alabama | 63 | 4,627,851 | 73,458 |
| Pennsylvania | 162 | 12,432,792 | 76,746 |
| Louisiana | 50 | 4,293,204 | 85,864 |
| Arkansas | 29 | 2,834,797 | 97,752 |
| Maine | 13 | 1,317,207 | 101,324 |
| Kentucky | 40 | 4,241,474 | 106,037 |
| Mississippi | 26 | 2,918,785 | 112,261 |
| West Virginia | 13 | 1,812,035 | 139,387 |
Interesting stuff. And yes, it would probably be more useful to produce these statistics by district instead of state, but it’s remarkably hard to pin down the exact definition of a district’s geography, and then even harder to determine the population in the district.
Maybe gives us some ideas on where to focus our marketing, where we have the lowest penetration for the Toastmasters program — or the greatest successes!